


Five Times One

by minie_ai



Series: Kuroken Week 2020 [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: 5 times; 1 time, Childhood Friends, M/M, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Protective Kenma Kozume, Protective Kuroo Tetsurou, mild bullying
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:13:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,828
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23677441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minie_ai/pseuds/minie_ai
Summary: Five times Kuroo defends Kenma from other people. One time Kenma defends Kuroo back.-Day 3: Five times, one time for Kuroken Week 2020
Relationships: Kozume Kenma/Kuroo Tetsurou
Series: Kuroken Week 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1700905
Comments: 6
Kudos: 274
Collections: Kuroken Week 2020





	Five Times One

**Author's Note:**

> This is not proof read, so I apologise in advanced if there are any errors~

  
  


**i.**

Kenma was hiding behind the park entrance, waiting for the right timing to enter the park where the other elementary kids were. His father had found him loitering on the stairs as he was talking to Kuroo, asking him to take Kenma to play soccer again. It wasn’t the first time it had happened, and Kenma figured it wouldn’t be the last time either, so reluctantly he agreed to go play with them just this time. His father smiled at him proudly and petted his head, standing by the door until Kenma had rounded a corner.  
  
It wasn’t that he didn’t like soccer, he just wasn’t too fond of the idea of chasing a ball around, kicking up dirt and possibly other people’s shins in the process. It was also too tiring having to run from one end to the other, the field was simply too big for Kenma who was already considered short for his age. Yes, Kenma did prefer watching soccer with his dad instead, or playing on his console at home, where he didn’t have to move anything except his fingers and eyes. 

He kicked at the ground as he walked towards the park, it was only a block away, but Kenma still liked to draw out the time getting there. The later he arrived, the less he would play. And if he was really lucky, perhaps the other children would tell him that they had enough players and if Kenma joined then the numbers would be uneven, giving him the perfect excuse to just sit underneath a tree until it was time to go home. He smiled at that thought. 

“Hey Tetsurou, why do you hang around Kenma? Isn’t he a little weird?” When he heard his name being mentioned, Kenma stopped and crouched down, hiding behind the metal gate. Thankfully no one seemed to have noticed him approaching, he didn’t think that they would be having this conversation if they knew he was present.

“Yeah! Kenma is always so quiet, and he doesn’t even play soccer with us!” Another voice responded with too much enthusiasm. 

_This is why I don’t play soccer with you guys_ Kenma thought to himself, frowning. He always knew that the other kids didn’t exactly have the best impression of him, but hearing them say it so straightforwardly still hurt his feelings a bit. 

He got on his hands and knees, ready to crawl away quietly when he heard Kuroo speak up. “What do you guys mean Kenma’s weird? He’s one of the smartest and most coolest people I know, and I know many smart and cool people! Sure he is quiet at times, but that’s just Kenma being Kenma, and it makes him even cooler. I wish I could be as quiet and badass as him!” Kuroo’s voice was nothing but genuine and confident. Kenma could hear the _woahs_ and _wow_ ’s from the small group that had gathered to play soccer, and even Kuroo’s obnoxious laughter, confirming their questions of doubt about Kenma.  
  
Kenma knew that Kuroo was cool, and he already had a large amount of respect for his friend, but hearing Kuroo defend Kenma when he didn’t even know that the younger was present made Kenma respect Kuroo even more. 

  
  
  
  


**ii.**

“Hey, hey. What do you say we eat some of those cookies your mum made yesterday”. Kuroo’s eyes were wide and sparkling. It was a regular day for the two, having come back from school together and now sitting in Kenma’s room playing games. 

Kuroo had actually wanted to try out one of the new volleyball moves he had seen on TV, but Kenma noticed the new bruises Kuroo had sported, and he wasn't too fancy on getting them himself. So he had managed to convince Kuroo to play video games with him instead. 

Kenma eyed him skeptically for a second, before returning his eyes back to the screen in front of him. 

“Mum said I can't have dessert before dinner” Kenma replied, fingers never pausing their movement on the controller. 

“It’ll be finee, we’ll just take one cookie each. Besides, your mum isn’t even home yet, she’ll never know”. Kuroo had already abandoned his controller, his character instantly dying. Kenma too left his controller, sighing as he shuffled himself off the bed. Although he has known Kuroo for two years already, Kenma think’s that sometimes he can’t keep up with him. 

They make their way down the stairs and into the kitchen. Kenma knew where the cookie tine was located, but he doubts that they could reach it.

“This is a bad idea. Mum might come home any second now too”. Kenma glanced at the clock, it was 6:21.

Kuroo gave him a big grin. “Nah, it’ll be fine. Come help me move this chair closer to the pantry”. So they both pushed the heavy dining chair until it was situated right in front of where the cookies were.

Kuroo, being the slightly taller of the two, decided upon himself that he was going to be the one to try and reach the cookie tin, as long as Kenma held onto the chair tightly.

Kenma didn’t like this idea, eyebrows furrowed. Yet he still held the chair in place as he looked up to see Kuroo reach out on his tippy-toes, barely reaching the tin. After a few more tries, he was able to inch the tin closer to the edge. So close that it tipped. Kenma’s eyes went wide with fear. Before he could even have time to react, Kuroo’s hands were on the tin, centimeters away from Kenma’s nose. They both looked at each other, eyes wide. That was not part of the plan. 

“What do you boys think you're doing?” They both jumped at the sound of Kenma’s mother’s voice. She stood at the entrance of the door, both hands firm on her hips. 

Kuroo and Kenma glanced at each other, eyes panicked. _This_ wasn’t part of the plan either. 

“Mum we jus-”

“It was my fault Aunty!” Kuroo clenched his eyes shut as he raised his hand and yelled on top of Kenma. “I was the one who told Kenma that we should eat cookies before dinner, even though he tried to stop me. It wasn’t his fault” Kenma could only stare at him. He knew that everything Kuroo said was technically true, but he was still surprised that Kuroo said it out loud. Kuroo hated it when Kenma’s mum was angry, he told Kenma that he hated disappointing Kenma’s mum. So Kenma didn’t understand. 

Kenma’s mum looked at the both of them for a second longer before her features softened. She dropped her bag on the dining table and went over to the two boys. Crouching down to their level, she took one of their hands into each of her own. 

“Look at me boys”. Kenma looked up into his mum’s eyes. Kuroo did the same, though significantly slower through his sniffles and wiping his tears with his free hand. 

“Even though you boys tried to break one of the rules I set, I’m not upset. That was a very brave thing you did there, Kuroo, standing up for your friend like that''. Kenma's mum gave a reassuring smile when Kuroo squeaked out a little _really?_

“It was very brave, and the right thing to do. But I still want you to know that it’s not right to try and force your friends to do something they didn’t want to do. And Kenma, if your friend is about to do something dangerous, you should try harder to stop them”. SHe gave each of the boys a firm look, but Kenma could tell his mum wasn’t angry anymore. He still avoided eye contact though. 

Kenma’s mum patted both boys on the head before standing up and packing away the dropped cookie tin. They ended up with no dessert after dinner for 3 days. 

  
  
  
  


**iii.**

Lunch break had just started, and Kenma found himself walking towards Kuroo’s homeroom class. It was a Tuesday, so it was Kenma’s turn to go to Kuroo’s room. To say that he isn’t still scared of the 2nd years was a lie. They all already looked like highschoolers, yet they were only a year older than Kenma. Even Kuroo himself has started growing at an incredible speed. He was already half a head taller than Kenma, and apparently he was still growing. Kenma thought that it was unfair, maybe once he became a 2nd year he would also start growing taller like Kuroo.

He peeked into the classroom once he arrived, and saw Kuroo chatting animatedly with some of his other classmates. His bento was laid out on the table, but Kuroo hasn’t touched his food yet. Kenma gripped onto his lunchbox tighter, it was always more difficult entering the room when Kuroo was talking to others, as it meant that he had to interrupt their conversations, and then people would definitely be looking at Kenma. He glanced over at the clock that hung above the blackboard, and saw that they only had 30 more minutes of lunch, so with a defeated sigh, he braced himself to enter the classroom and slowly made his way over to the window where Kuroo was seated at. 

He could hear other 2nd years around him laughing and chattering away, minding their own business, yet he still kept his eyes focused on his shoes when he walked. 

That was probably the first mistake he made. 

When he heard a laughing voice and footsteps increasing in his direction, he still didn’t look up, instead he hoped that he could somehow side step the kid that was running around in the classroom.

The second mistake.

Kenma felt the thud of another body against his, and before he could even realise what was happening there was a sharp stab of pain in his back and then the clatter and scrape of a chair and table moving from the weight. _Ah, everyone is watching_. 

The entire classroom went silent, and Kenma could feel every single pair of eyes in the room on him. Except for the throb of pain that came from his back, Kenma figured that he was probably fine, the chair had mostly saved him from any other injuries. For the other student though, Kenma couldn’t say the same for him. He had landed face first onto the floor, remains of what looked like a curry bread was smashed underneath him. He wobbly made his way up from the floor, and when he looked up to make eye contact with Kenma, his eyes were burning. Kenma didn’t always feel fear, not even from stupid horror movies that Kuroo brought over whenever he had a chance, it was always too predictable. But in this very moment, Kenma felt the shivers of fear run down his spine. The kid looked like he wanted to rip Kenma’s head off with his bare teeth. 

“What the hell man?! Can’t you see where you’re going?!” He yelled at Kenma with so much spite in his voice that Kenma couldn’t help but flinch away. 

“I-I’m sorry” Kenma mumbled quietly. He wasn’t really sorry, he was mainly in shock but an irk of annoyance washed over him. The kid ran into him first, why was he the one getting yelled at?

The boy grabbed a fistfull of Kenma’s collar, and pulled him closer to him to yell in his face. “What’s with the attitude? Aren’t you just a first year? You should talk to your senpai with more respect than this!” This close Kenma could smell the faint spices of the curry bread, and see the flush as well as tears of humiliation brimming the boy’s eyes. He couldn’t blame him though, with everyone watching them he too felt embarrassed.

“Hey Nakamura, let him go, Kenma already apologised”. Kuroo had a firm hand on the other boy, _Nakamura’s_ , shoulder, voice serious. He looked over at Kenma and then crouched down besides him. 

“You okay Kenma? Did you get hurt anywhere?” Kuroo looked over him for any signs of injury or pain. Kenma shook his head, but another throb of pain appeared right at that moment, causing him to scrunch up in discomfort.

“C’mon, let's get you to the infirmary” Kuroo stood up and offered his hand to the younger. Kenma slowly grabbed it, but let his hair fall in front of his face, still hyper aware of all the other students looking at the scene. 

Some of Nakamura’s friends also came over to help him up on his feet, but Kuroo’s act didn't sit well with the boy. “Why is he acting like a knight in shining armour for that loser anyways?” The boy had only muttered it underneath his breath, but Kuroo heard it and he had enough. With one swing of his hand his fist met the boy’s face, the sound of skin connecting to skin ringing loud. 

-

Kenma waited outside of the school gates, students long gone. He kicked a couple of pebbles around until he heard approaching footsteps. Kenma looked up to see Kuroo walking in front of his dad, still standing tall as ever. “I guess you won’t be seeing me in school for the next two weeks” Kuroo held up a peace sign to him and smiled brightly, as if his cheek wasn’t swelling with a new bruise. Kuroo’s father could only sigh and shake his head.

  
  
  
  


**iv.**

“But captain, it’s not fair for Kenma to be the only one running extra laps after practice!” Kuroo was exasperated. The difference in treatment between Kenma and the rest of the team was evident even to a passerby. He doesn’t remember his first year being as tough as Kenma’s, and neither does he see any of the other first years in Kenma’s grade having to do extra practice. It was clear as day that this was bullying, and the thought alone sends a wave of anger through his veins.  
  
“Kuroo, we are merely trying to help your friend and the team. It would be a shame if he couldn’t keep up in training and be kicked out, so this extra practice is only for his benefit” Kuroo could hear the other third years snicker obnoxiously at that and only felt his frustrations grow. He could feel his nails digging into his hands with how tightly he was clenching his fists.

“My, my Kuroo. Why are you so tense for? Surely you aren’t suggesting that we’re bullying our _dear_ first years, are you?” Although the third year’s tone was light and joking, the glint in his eyes were full of warning. 

“If you’re so eager to have extra practice as well, why not help the first years clean up?” With that, the captain turned around and walked away, leaving Kuroo standing alone. His eyes were brimming with tears of frustration and he couldn’t. Even. Do. Anything.  
  


-  
  
That afternoon, when Kenma told him about his thoughts of quitting the team, Kuroo made a vow to himself to never let anyone feel the same amount of frustration the both of them felt against the third years. He was going to build a team that shows off Kenma’s true strength, and then lead that team to nationals. 

  
  
  
  


**v.**

“Did you see? That 2nd year boy totally could have prevented the ball dropping at the end”.  
  
“No way, are you saying that he dropped the ball on purpose?!”  
  
Amongst the cheers of _congratulations_ and pats of _you fought well’s_ , Kuroo could hear the murmurs of rumours about the end of their game. It was an unfortunate ending, but nothing could have prevented it. The long rallies and their intense plays was bound to leave sweat on the ball. And if not the ball slipping from Kenma, then it would have slipped out of the grasps from someone else. 

  
Kuroo had accepted the ending. He knew they had to lose somewhere, and what a better way to go then after a good fight with their destined rivals. They didn’t make it easy for Karasuno to win either, so he was damn proud of his team. 

That’s why, when he hears the whispers of people talking crap about what could have been, he feels his blood boil.  
  
“I want you to know that I’m proud of every single one of you guys, whether you played the entire game, only for a couple of minutes or even just supporting from the bench. Every single one of you have worked extremely hard to get to where we are today. Not every team gets to stand on this stage and call themselves national-level athletes”. Kuroo made sure to look every member of the Nekoma team in the eyes, to let them know that he means every word he was saying. “Although we may have lost this time, we sure as hell didn’t go down without giving Karasuno a hard time. All of your practise and hard work was worth it, and the results of the game were neither an individual's fault, nor an entire team's fault, it just shows how hard everyone has fought”. Kuroo looked Kenma in the eyes when he said that. To anyone else, Kenma might seem impassive about their loss, but Kuroo could tell that the younger was feeling guilty about it. His eyes remained on Kenma for a beat longer, giving him _the_ look, before he returned to captain mode.

  
“And for the second and first years, I hope you take these feelings you're feeling right now and channel them into working even harder. Us third years will come to watch you all take national championships next year! Thank you for being the best team that we could have played for.” Kuroo finished his captain speech with a bow, and the rest of the team started hollering. He could also hear the claps of the other students from theri school who had come down to cheer them on. 

When he rose again, he made sure to look at those students who were spreading gossip dead in the eye, void of all emotions except anger. He saw them flinch before avoiding eye contact. _Hopefully that got the message across_ . He then went back to cheering up the team, making sure to spend extra time with any members who had tears streaming down their faces.  
  
-  
  


That night, when tears of dejection flowed down his own face, Kenma was there to wipe them away. In between sobs of regret and babbles of frustration, Kuroo blurted that the loss wasn’t Kenma’s fault. He had to make sure the younger understood that. Kenma let him know that he did understand every single time Kuroo repeated it, as he let him cry on his shoulder  
  


  
  


**i.**

Kenma let out a small yawn as he trudged his feet towards the vending machine. His entire body was still aching from their game yesterday against Karasuno. He wasn’t even sure why he decided to go to school today, he was pretty sure he was coming down with a fever. He’ll definitely stay home tomorrow.  
  


That morning he had been greeted by his classmates as if he were a hero, all pats of congratulations and telling him that he did well in the match. Kenma shuddered at the thought of that much interaction with his classmates. He slowed to a stop when he saw two other students talking in front of the vending machine, blocking the way for Kenma or anyone else to use. If it were another day, he would simply walk all the way to the other side of the school to go get his hot chocolate, but as he passed by that one this morning, he saw that they were out of stock. So the more popular one near the canteen was the only option left.  
  
He pulled out his phone to wait out whatever conversation these two students were having, and just as he was about to plug in his earphones, he heard something that caught his attention.  
  
The students started talking about the game they had yesterday, as most of the school has been doing. He didn’t blame them it was the first time in 5 years that their school had gone nationals for volleyball, so it was an exciting thing. Most of the school took their loss pretty well, all giving encouraging words whenever they saw members of the volleyball team, but Kenma knew that not everyone was like that.  
  
“Yeah I heard our school lost because the ball slipped from Kozume-senpai’s hand” The voice came from the short girl with pigtails. Kenma figured that she didn’t attend the game in persson, she didn’t seem like the type to.  
  
“Kozume….Ahh, as in the guy in class two? I never thought he was the athletic type” Kenma looked at the guy standing with pigtails. He was definitely a second year student like Kenma, going off his uniform, but he didn’t recognise him from his class nor from his joint classes with class one.  
  
“Hey, I heard that the entire volleyball team coddles Kozume-senpai like crazy. Especially the captain, Kuroo-senpai!” Kenma could feel an itch of irritation starting to form. 

“Ohh I heard that too! Apparently Kuroo-senpai let Kozume-kun skip practice regularly just because they were childhood friends or something. And you know what? Apparently he wasn't even mad that they had lost, he just continued spoiling Kozume-kun”. 

Kenma wasn't sure why these people thought they had the right to spread rumours about his friendship with the team and Kuroo, but he wasn't in the mood to deal with it. 

“No way! So you're saying our school could have won if Kozume-senpai didn't slack off that much??” That struck a nerve in Kenma. They wouldn't know how much hard work and effort he's been putting into training, why are they acting like they know him. 

“No, I'm saying.. ” the boy started off full of suspense. “ _People_ are saying that our school could have won if Kuroo-senpai worked harder. If he was a better captain that didn't play favourites and actually chose members that benefited the school. I always thought Kuroo-senpai was a pretty cool guy, but he totally lost my respect after that” The boy shrugged his shoulders, looking smug while the girl looked at him in awe. 

Kenma saw red. 

He grabbed the boy by his shirt and shoved him against the vending machine with a growl. Kenma could tolerate people looking down on him, they have been his entire life, but if someone who has no right to have an opinion comes in and blatantly disrespect Kuroo, the most kindest and hard working person he knows, then Kenma had a problem. 

He vaguely registers the pigtail girl let out a scream, but he pays her no mind, eyes focused solely on the guy in front of him.

“What the hell man?” the initial shock wore off, the boy now clearly angry as well as he started pushing back against Kenma. 

With strength Kenma didn't know he had, he used one arm to push against the boy's chest. _Ahh I levelled up from training._

The boy's face was full of anger, and Kenma was sure his own mirrored the same expression. 

“You do _not_ get to talk about Kuro like that. He is the one person who has worked the hardest and has sacrificed the most in order for all of us to do well. You do not know the amount of effort he is constantly putting into everything he does and all the things he has to endure to make the people around him are happy. He has been nothing but _the_ best captain and friend that anyone could have asked for, so you do not belittle his efforts like this. If you want to pick on someone then talk crap about me for all I care, but do _not_ dirty Kuroo’s name by that trash mouth of yours!” Kenma was filled with rage, and he was sure that this is the loudest he’s had to raise his voice in a while.  
  
The boy was shaking underneath his grip. Kenma could feel the eyes of the students that had gathered trail down his entire being, their murmurs clinging onto him like a second skin. A part of him was glad for the crowd, the more people that got his message the better, the other part felt like an insect under a microscope. He was aware of every little reaction they had. He almost regretted his outburst, _almost_. The little lunch that he ate was starting to stir in his stomach.

With a final push against the vending machine and a warning glare, Kenma let the other boy go. He himself turned to walk to the bathrooms, or maybe even the rooftop, he wasn’t in the mood for class anymore. 

He stopped in his tracks when his eyes landed on the very person this outburst was about. Kuroo was standing with Yaku in the crowd, probably having been on their way to the canteen. Both of their eyes were wide in shock, and when Kenma made eye contact with Kuroo he felt like a tightly sprung spring in him was released. Tears started brimming his eyes, so he forced his head down and shoved past the crowds, past Kuroo, to run away like he always has. 

He could hear Kuroo call out to him, but he kept running. He kept running, disregarding whoever he ran into or where he ran to, he just knew that he needed to get away. Away from all the eyes wide with shock.

When Kenma finally ran out of breath, he found himself behind the school, where students were forbidden to go due to the flowers that the principal was trying to grow. He slumped himself against the wall and brought his knees up to his face as he let the tears fall.  
  
Why was he crying? He didn’t know. He knew he didn’t regret defending Kuroo, so why was he crying? This wasn’t like him.  
  
Before he could recollect himself, he heard another pair of approaching footsteps and then a deep breath of air.  
  
“KOZUME KENMA!”  
  


Kenma nearly jumped out of his skin at the deep voice. He looked up to see Kuroo catching his breath before carding a hand through his hair. 

Kenma avoided eye contact. He was sure Kuroo was going to be angry at him. Kuroo was never one to tolerate violence, even in Kenma’s video games. 

When he heard the first sounds of laughter, Kenma thought his ears were tricking him. His head shot up to see Kuroo doubled over, holding his stomach as he let out loud bursts of laughter.  
  
Kenma furrowed his brows, _has Kuroo gone insane?_

“Wow, I never would have thought that there would come a day where I would see you put so much emotion into your actions. I’m kind of proud of you Kenma” Kuroo looked at him with a fond look in his eyes. He took a seat next to Kenma and leaned his head against the wall, looking up at the sky.  
  
“You know, I didn’t catch the beginning of your conversation with that student, nor do I know what he did to cause you to react like that. But I really want to say thank you. Thank you for standing up for me like that, he must have said some pretty nasty things if even _you_ ended up reacting like that”. Kuroo looked over at him with a soft smile, and Kenma could feel the emotions washing over him. 

Kenma could feel his face heat up, so he broke off eye contact. “Whatever, it wasn’t like it was anything you wouldn’t have done either if you were me”. He wiped the tears that were staining his face. His face was definitely heated. 

Kuroo let out another bark of laughter at that. “Ahh you’re right, I would have probably done the same. But maybe I would have given him a nice little punch to the face as well”. His voice was teasing, but Kenma could tell he was telling the truth. He looked over at Kuroo, who was giving him one of his big grins.  
  
“No you wouldn’t” Kenma retaliated.

“Yes I would”  
  
“You wouldn’t”  
  
“I would”

Kuroo looked over at him, eyes serious. “I would. I’ve done it before and I would do it again if the situation calls for it”.  
  
Kenma’s eyes widened, blush creeping onto his face. “Sh-shut up you idiot”. He looked away, willing his face to stop flushing. “J-just, skip last period with me!”

Kuroo laughed out loud again. “Oh my, my Kenma. You’ll end up being the idiot here if you keep skipping classes like this”. He nudged Kenma in the side, who only grunted in response.

When the bell rang, neither of them made a move, and just continued to sit whilst enjoying each other's presence. 

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Wow this was probably the most difficult prompt to write for. It felt like i was writing 6 different mini stories in 1 story, without trying to repeat myself. So thats why this is delayed :'))
> 
> Nonetheless, I'm proud of myself for getting this out, even if it's late. I hope you enjoyed reading this :DD
> 
> Come talk to me on twt or tumblr


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